FlixChatter Review: SPECTRE (2015)

I wonder if the way I feel about the Bond song somehow impacts how I feel about the film itself. Some of my least favorite Bond songs are The Man with the Golden Gun, Die Another Day, and Quantum of Solace, and those are also my least favorite Bond films. I already mentioned in this post how much I abhorred Sam Smith’s latest, Writing’s on the Wall which sounds more like fingernails on a chalk board. Unfortunately for me, during the press screening, I had to endure that song not once but twice as they played Sam Smith’s music video before the movie, so I had to suffer through THAT song once again during the opening title [sigh]

Of course it’s ludicrous to judge a Bond movie from the song, so I was prepared for an awesome Bond film. To be fair, the melody of the song itself is actually not bad, with Thomas Newman back scoring this again after Skyfall. Well, the first 15 minutes is certainly promising. It’s tradition that Bond films open with a bang and this one is no different, starting with a foot chase through a throng of huge crowd during the Day of the Dead festival in Mexico City. It’s followed by a spectacular fight scene aboard a helicopter flying above the main square. If we’re to judge a movie by cinematography alone, Spectre is excellent, thanks to Hoyte van Hoytema whose done amazing work in Her and Interstellar recently.

Plot-wise, Spectre has a lot going for it, at least on paper. The parallel conflicts that Bond and M are facing in the film also promises an extra layer of intrigue, in addition to the personal vendetta that runs through the vein of Daniel Craig‘s Bond films. A cryptic message from Bond’s past sends him on a trail to uncover a sinister organization and somehow he ends up going rogue. Meanwhile, his boss M (Ralph Fiennes) is dealing with a crisis of his own as the head of Joint Intelligence Service (which merged MI5 and MI6) threatened to shut down the double-O section. It’s an intriguing set up and as a massive Bond fan, I expect once again to be bowled over.

Alas, after that spectacular opening, the film seems to lose momentum and never quite claim it back. All the high-octane action didn’t have quite the adrenaline rush I expected from a Bond movie. Even the car chase through the streets of Rome feels rather stale, it’s like I’ve seen a far more exciting car chase scene in previous Bond movies and recently in its rival franchise, Mission Impossible 5. Then there’s the unintentional humor that makes it hard to take the film seriously. The two times Bond wooed two of the beautiful Bond girls, Monica Bellucci and Léa Seydoux, the scenes elicit laughter from the audience. It feels so obligatory and cringe-worthy, a far cry from the intriguing AND sexy love affair between Bond and Vesper in Casino Royale. Vesper was a complex character with a compelling story arc, but here the two Bond girls aren’t given the same courtesy. It’s sad to see an actress of Bellucci’s stature be utterly wasted here.

The film also promises a massive super villain, the mother lode of all villains Bond has encountered in his past, “I’m the source of all your pain,” Oberhauser tells him once Bond gets to his lair. So it’s quite a let down that this supposedly fearsome, ultra-powerful mastermind turns out to be not so menacing at all. Remember how sinister Christoph Waltz was in Inglourious Basterds? Well, here he’s nothing more than a clichéd psychopath throwing tantrums at Bond because of… a childhood feud. Huh? No less than FOUR screenwriters credited here, three of whom also worked on Skyfall, and all they could come up with is THIS half-baked story? [spoiler alert] I find it hard to believe that Mads Mikkelsen’s Le Chifre, who was effortlessly menacing AND intriguing in Casino Royale, actually worked for this lame, petulant nutjob.

Sam Mendes and his team of writers seems to have recycled a lot of what’s been done in previous Bond films with nothing new to add to the franchise. In fact, in terms of the treatment of the Bond girls, it’s a step backward. The film seems to aim for a darker story but the execution feels light and even unintentionally comical. I realize that Bond films aren’t expected to be too deep or poignant, but even the fun, escapism factor seems to be missing in this one as Mendes can’t decide what kind of Bond movie he wants this to be. At times it harkens back to the Roger Moore era, which is a jarring contrast to the more pensive and grittier tone established in Craig’s films.

The returning characters from Skyfall are still good in their roles. I do like Ralph Fiennes as M but yet he still can’t hold a candle to how fantastic Judi Dench was in the role. Moneypenny and Q (Naomie Harris and Ben Whishaw) have bit more to do in supporting 007, though not so much that would make any real impact in the movie. Andrew Scott, who’s excellent in the Sherlock series, is just serviceable here, but Dave Bautista certainly lives up to other big, burly but taciturn henchmen of Bond’s past. The fight scene on the train is certainly an homage to From Russia With Love and The Spy Who Loved Me with my favorite henchman, Jaws.

As for the titular hero, I still like Craig as Bond, but more often than not he looks bored in this movie. It’s as if he’s weary of the same old types of shenanigans and hollow sexual escapades in various exotic locations. Yes I know Bond’s supposed to have this devil-may-care attitude but I think there’s a sense of fatigue that the actor can’t quite conceal. Perhaps it’s telling when Craig said in an interview recently how he’d rather slash his wrist than play James Bond again. It’s tacky to bite the hand that feeds you, but I can’t say I blame him for feeling that way.

It’s a pity because this could’ve been a truly great swan song for Craig if he were to retire as Bond (though I think he’d be back for at least one more). I like the fact that four of his films are connected in some way, though the constant throwback to his previous films also invites the inevitable comparison. If I were to rank Craig’s Bond films now, Spectre is just slightly more watchable than Quantum of Solace, but falls far short of the greatness of Casino Royale and Skyfall.

Spectre might’ve topped the box office, but it’s nowhere near the top of the best Bond films for me. So I guess that awful theme song is sort of a warning about the movie. Bond’s most personal mission barely evoke any emotional response as the protagonist himself didn’t even seem to care. There’s just no compelling human drama here in this largely soulless affair. Overall the payoff just doesn’t live up to all that build-up and frankly, the film is just forgettable. I saw it four days ago yet I barely remember anything about it. It’s such a bummer really, this movie even made this loyal Bond fan think that perhaps I’ve outgrown this franchise a bit.

Well, what did you think of Spectre? Did you like it more or less than I did?

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75 thoughts on “FlixChatter Review: SPECTRE (2015)”

Still waiting for this to release down here haha, no surprise!! But this seems to be the prevailing trend, not up to par with Skyfall, which I still need to see.

That is a real bummer to hear that Waltz isn’t anything like he was in Basterds. I was really looking forward to seeing another great villain from him, sounds like he didn’t have the material to work with. Say what you want about Tanratino but he certainly gets the most out of his actors!

It’s not up to par w/ Casino Royale either, which is still my fave of the Daniel Craig’s Bonds. Yeah Waltz just wasn’t scary at all here, but I think it’s more in the writing. QT sets up ‘Basterds’ with such a sinister suspense that I was on the edge of my seat the whole time, not the case here at all.

I’m on the same page as Ruth. After the massive opening in Mexico City’s Day of The Dead – the film has no where to go but down. Seydoux and Bautista were fine, but if I’m asked, I think they made a monumental mistake in casting Fiennes as M. He’s actually a great M, but he’d have made a far better villain.

As for Walz, it’s not so much that he does a bad job, rather it’s that the character wasn’t written with any kind of fierceness or intoxicating evil. Walz as Oberhauser comes off as just a creep who likes to administer torture. So we can easily fob off the responsibility on the script.

Hi Mike! Glad we are on the same page on this one. Yeah, that opening sequence is so spectacular but the filmmakers seem to have a hard time topping that. I don’t mind Fiennes as M but yeah he’s probably more suitable as a villain, given how sinister he was in Schindler’s List! But then again, Christoph was great in Inglourious Basterds but he’s not used properly here. I definitely think it’s the writing that’s the main issue, seriously, they had FOUR screenwriters involved but STILL couldn’t come up with something more creative.

Yeah I agree with some what you point out there but I definitely enjoyed it more than you did. Loved the cinematography and that opening action sequence was spectacular! I didn’t mind the “lighter” tone after three “dark” Bond films. Heck I didn’t even mind Mendes’ throwbacks to his favorite Bond films. But what frustrated me was the last 45 minutes or so of the film, since most of us already know a certain actor is Blofeld, his revelation was pretty lacking and not at all surprising. For such a stable villain of the franchise, I expected more from the filmmakers.

I think this was a good example of too many cooks in the kitchen, like you mentioned, there were too many screenwriters involved and that means too many rewrites. Also, I remember reading about how the Sony executives weren’t too thrill about the film’s original ending, so they ordered rewrites. You can see that on the screen, the climatic sequence was badly edited and written. It might be the worst since action sequence to end a Bond film since THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH. Speaking of action, I was surprised the lack of big shootouts, again I think Mendes was trying to please his bosses by not including any shootout scenes. Or maybe he was doing homage to the earlier Bond films since those ones didn’t have much shootouts in them.

Despite my frustration with the last 45 minutes, I still enjoyed the heck out of it. I’m seeing again later this week so I might change my mind…

Hi Ted! I don’t mind the lighter tone if the film stuck with a consistent tone. It was tonally all over the place and the plot just wasn’t interesting at all. It started out intriguing but the pay off was so lame, it happened over and over, it was frustrating. So I wish I could say the cinematography could keep me entertained but it just wasn’t. Even the action wasn’t memorable, I enjoyed the MI5 action scenes so much more and don’t get me started about the wasted Bond girls!

Yep, I think the rewrites killed this movie, so that’s already a bad sign from the get go to see SO MANY writers credited. I’m glad Mendes isn’t gonna be back doing another Bond, let’s hope they get better writers, or just ONE good writer would suffice, seriously!

Yeah MI-5 was a better film for sure. With the exception of the opening action sequence, the rest of the big action scenes in this film were pretty average, considering how much they spent on shooting it, I was expecting something spectacular for climatic battle. As for the Bond girls, I was not surprised at all that either of them had much to do in the film.

Mendes kept saying he won’t come back but when this one makes another billion dollars at the box office, I’m sure the studio folks will up his paycheck and he’ll make another one. But I hope they’ll bring in a new director and writers to make a more refreshing story for the next Bond outing.

YES please, a new director who actually has a vision for a FRESH Bond. I don’t think the issue is with Craig, mostly the writing and directing. It’s ridiculous how expensive this film is but nothing really to show for it as the action isn’t memorable. More isn’t better, Hollywood, it’s just more… or in this case it’s just too much of mediocrity.

My favorite Bond’s title is still Craig’s Casino Royale, then Skyfall. I don’t really grow up with Bond, but I watched some of his films, and I came up with a conclusion. Spectre is a bit too distant from Craig’s Bond, it’s more to classic Bond. But, seriously, that Blofeld’s revelation? So fishy like John Harrison in Star Trek Into Darkness, and it’s not really worth it, isn’t it?

Oh yeah, my fave is still Casino Royale by a wiiiide margin, followed by Skyfall. Spectre just doesn’t know what it wants to be, hence the uneven tone of the movie. The Blofeld revelation is just so laughable, just like the two *romantic* scenes that drew laughter from the audience.

Anytime you wanna discuss 007 head on over to my site. From what I’ve read of reviews the two things that everyone agrees on are that the opening sequence was majestic and the cinematography was gorgeous.

I enjoyed the movie a little more than you did. I was entertained by Spectre, but agree with you the romance and villainy was uninspired. Other Bond movies have more charm and originality. Agree the cinematography is excellent!

I was hoping that it’d at least be entertaining even if there were plot holes in the story. But I could barely remember any of the scenes which is a bad sign. I mean, the last Mission Impossible were chock full of memorable action sequences AND the girl was fun to watch, can’t say that’s the case here. Cinematography is one of the few plus points.

It pains me to write this Dan, as you know I was so anticipating this and had such high hopes. I was hoping it’d be at least equal to Skyfall, given they had the same director and some of the writers, but this was a huge letdown.

Nicely detailed review Ruth, it seems that opinion of Spectre has started to lean towards mixed since it’s international roll-out. As you know from my review I had some issues with it and I’m interested to see how it might fare on second viewing when I pick up the Blu-ray.

Thanks Chris! I had to include a spoiler alert in there even though everyone already knows who Spectre is, even those who haven’t seen the film. I don’t think I’ll bother buying this one, not sure I’ll watch it again anytime soon.

Ruth, what an articulate review. I had every intention of seeing it this past weekend but couldn’t get to the cinema. I trust your instincts, however, and will take what you say with me when I do catch it this week. With the Bond franchise, originality is difficult and the balance to cater to truists and yet be exciting for today’s bond watchers is a daunting task–they succeeded with Skyfall. I liked the earlier comment that the script seemed to have too many authors. Instead of having a fresh clear story, it felt muddled. Well, I’ll get back to you!

Hi Cindy! I think the filmmakers could still make it fresh, as they did that w/ Casino Royale and Skyfall, but there’s so many missed opportunities, esp in regards to the villains. I couldn’t believe there are FOUR screenwriters here, which is already a bad sign as that means there are a ton of rewrites. I do hope you enjoy this more than I did when you get around to seeing this, Cindy!

Spot on Ruth. I know we have talked some about it but this was a fun yet terribly frustrating movie. I was really surprised at how poorly developed the villain was. Waltz is such a good actor yet he is given practically nothing to work with and very little screen time to boot. And the story was so hit and miss. There were a few things that made more sense once I stopped and thought about them afterwards. Still that doesn’t solve the stretches of dullness that I never expected from this movie.

Hi Keith! Y’know, I can’t even say the movie was fun the more I think about it. I tried really hard to see which scenes (apart from the opening) that I want to see again and I came up with none, zero, zilch. I think even the silly Roger Moore films had really fun action sequences I still like watching over and over. I also REALLY dislike the way they barely utilize the actors: Bellucci, Seydoux AND Waltz whom I love in other films. “… stretches of dullness” is right, and can you believe the budget was $350 million??? Absolutely ludicrous. A great story is the best special effects of all, if only Hollywood would ever grasp that concept.

Hi Jay! I wish I could say the same and I didn’t find the opening credits all that great either 😦 But yeah, we agreed that the movie was boring, seriously, all $350mil + was so wasted I think, the only memorable part was that opening sequence!

Hi, Ruth, I had just watched Spectre, yeah it a disappointment, not mention I do not like the 007 new style, since Craig
For me, the Bond movies have strayed further and further from the Bond movies I expected
probably I just an oldtimer
But what I miss from Mr Bond is his cockiness, confident, and especially playfulness
Mr Bond used to do his mission easier going since Craig Mr Bond has become too strict
What I expect from Bond movie is more entertaining, relaxing, nowadays Bond movies have lost it, soul, for me

And I think the first Bond movie we had been watching was The spy who loves me, Uncle Watt (I might have spelled wrong) introduced it to us

Hi there bro, awesome to see not one but TWO comments from you! We grew up watching Bond movies together, I forgot that Oom Hwatt was the one who introduced The Spy Who Loved Me to us. I know he bought me the VHS of Superman The Movie as I rented it so many times.

Yeah, I love Drax and Stromberg and their villain ‘lair’ are indeed grand! I think Bond was full of escapism entertainment that fits the 80s w/ Roger Moore. I don’t mind the darker tone, but w/ Spectre, it seems that they want to mix the darker tone with some of the lighter stuff, that’s why it’s so uneven.

And adding to my previous comment, the villain bosses in Bond movie also less and less grand, the spy who loves me has submersible villain HQ and Moonraker has chateau and orbital station that’s what I called ‘grand.’
I am especially like the scene when Mr. Stromberg raises the submersible base with Mozart, or Mr. Drax playing Chopin
Also, Mr. Bond gadget are also less and less grand; I have heard the excuses for the gadgets is nowadays has become reality so it won’t ‘catchy.’ anymore well for me it does not matter, movies are about entertainment, so I am want to see something ‘cool’ something unordinary, does not matter about the actual real world gadgets
As for Spectre, Blofeld used to have cat with sparkling diamond necklace, detail things like this that used to make 007 movies special
007 world seems darkened and grim, not fun to watch anymore, major disappointment!
Mr Bond does like train, and the fighting scene in Spectre is the worst

Ruth, I love your review. You and I are in complete agreement here. I did not like this film at all. The opening scene was wonderful. Perhaps if I had been in a better mood I would have given the film 2-1/2 stars instead of 2 stars, but the misuse of Monica Bellucci put me over the edge. The song… is perhaps the worst Bond song ever. I still can’t believe how bad this film was put together.

Hi Mariah, glad we’re in the same camp here. I feel I’m a bit generous w/ my rating here, you’re right it’s criminal how they completely wasted Monica Bellucci, I mean seriously?? That scene was laughable too, how their mouths are wide open before they kiss, it was so cheesy and kinda gross too. Yep, the song was excruciating and I had to listen to it TWICE before the movie even started 😦

Nice review Ruth, I think I enjoyed Christoph Waltz more than most here. I thought he, in a limited capacity, was able to tap into the psychopathic pretty damn well. I wasn’t overly pleased with how he was handled at the end however and the torture scene (and the inevitable escape) was a letdown as well. But as for how Waltz portrayed this man, I was satisfied. That said there was a lot of dragging in Spectre. Lots of non-action. which is fine if you’re building up story in the earlygoing, but we know this film comes towards the end of the Craig era so we’re all reasonably expecting a big, bombastic action-packed thriller, which is clearly not what Sam Mendes wanted to deliver this time. Very strange situation. And yeah, Sam Smith’s contribution to this film was awful. I hated that song as well.

Hi Tom! I think Christoph wasn’t to blame, it’s the writing as he wasn’t given an interesting character arc. The torture scene looks like something out of an Austin Powers movie! I thought all the chases, plane, car, train, etc are not memorable at all. Really, only the opening sequence w/ the chopper is the only one that was well done, and that’s why it’s so disappointing as it sort of set the bar high for the movie but it didn’t meet that. I can’t tell you how excruciating it was having to listen to Smith’s song TWICE before the movie, I really can’t stand his voice.

Absolutely fair enough Ruth. You’re not the first to be unimpressed by Spectre. Obviously I really liked it; maybe it caught me on a good day! It’s not Skyfall, but it was still an
(overlong admittedly) rollercoaster.

Hi Mark! Well, after having read a lot of the reviews from the UK a week before it opened in the US, my expectation was high. It’s ok to disagree though, we can’t all like the same thing, though as a Bond fan, I really wish I were in your camp.

Mark and I seemingly are in the minority here with regards to ‘SPECTRE’. Repeating my post comment, yeah, we’ve a difference of opinion with regard to this, Ruth, but that’s quite okay. Obviously, I enjoyed “SPECTRE” more than you. Strangely, it has some of the quiet, more personal elements I liked in “Quantum of Solace”, without some of the badly staged action sequences, and rectified some of those things that irked me about “Skyfall”. “Casino Royale” is still my favorite among Craig’s, but “SPECTRE” now edges past it’s predecessor. For me, anyways. 😉

Casino Royale is still my all time fave by a long shot too Michael, followed by Skyfall though I’m not a huge fan of Silva either. But at least Bardem was quite scary in that he was unpredictable (not to mention creepy), whilst Waltz wasn’t menacing at all. Not even a little bit. But yeah, I still love this franchise, and it’s still fun talking about Bond. In fact, I started watching some older Bond films on Hulu this weekend 😀

Great review Ruth. I really enjoyed it as a throwback with more grit and depth, but I’ve gotta agree with you on the Bond girl issue. Monica Bellucci is especially short-changed, her character arc is a bit laughable really. I totally get and applaud the idea of casting a older Bond girl, but it would have been truly revolutionary for Bellucci and Seydoux to have switched roles.

Hi Adam! Monica Bellucci is like the sexiest woman alive who happens to be a good actress. It’s criminal how underutilized she was here, I was hoping she’d appear again later in the film! Yes, I think it’d have been more intriguing if Bellucci was in Seydoux’s role, or at the very least give her a character arc that merit casting her in the first place!

On the strength of Skyfall I was pretty pumped for another Bond film with the same director. But then all the reviews started coming in and now I’m not in a rush to check this out in the theatres. Too bad to hear that Daniel Craig is bored or looks bored, it would have been nice if he left Bond on a strong, memorable note. I finally got around to watching MI5 Rogue Nation, thought it was great, that should fill my spy action movie quota for a little while longer haha. Good review Ruth!

Hey Eddie, not sure how I missed your comment, sorry man. Yes, I was impressed w/ Skyfall too and what Mendes bring to the movie. But now I hope he’s done w/ this franchise as the direction was bad and Craig looked bored indeed. MI5 is absolutely fantastic, if only this one was even half as entertaining!

Well I cannot say it matches Casino Royale or Skyfall, I can say that it is largely successful in entertaining at least me. I don’t care much for the theme song but I liked it more in context with the credits than I did before I saw the movie. Waltz is under utilized but he had a nice ominous buildup with the Rome meeting,and the final visage of his Blofeld made me feel like the movie was really getting started although it was actually ending. I think one of the main issues I had with it was the need of the writers to keep the continuity of earlier Craig Bonds in this story line. It was unnecessary and distracting. A Stand alone feature would be perfectly fine. I quite liked the sequence with Mr. White, even though it does not feature much action. OK these are all random thoughts, maybe I’ll come back and add some more later. I’d go 3.5 reels if pushed on it.

Hi Richard, sorry somehow I missed your comment. I like the song as instrumental in context of the movie, too, I just can’t stand Smith’s voice. I think the buildup was ominous but the payoff was just lame. “I think one of the main issues I had with it was the need of the writers to keep the continuity of earlier Craig Bonds in this story line.” I agree! I don’t think it’s necessary at all and making everything personal is just so forced and doesn’t work.

Saw the film last night. Sadly, I completely agree with you Ruth on several points… namely, Christopher Waltz’s lame villain and the weak lineage between him and the other villains of Craig’s tenure in the role, poor female characters (under-served by the writers), and a less-than exciting second half. A middling Bond – not the worst by any stretch but not Skyfall or Casino Royale either.

Hey Dan! It’s such a bummer isn’t it? Man, we were both super excited for it so it was such a letdown. The actors are all so underutilized it’s criminal, but most especially Monica Bellucci, my goodness!! VERY middling and borderline embarassing at times. Yep, it definitely will NOT end up in my top 10 by any stretch of imagination.

😦 I keep reading reviews that do not favour the film and find it mediocre. That is so sad because I have been looking forward to this for the longest time 😦 Oh well, still going to see it when we get it next week, then I can see what I think.

It’s really a bummer Zoë, as you might remember I’m a big Bond fan. I know you’ve sort of just starting to get into this franchise right? Well this ain’t no Casino Royale or Skyfall, but do see it and hope you like it more than I did.

I know you are a big Bond fan (especially the delightful Mr Dalton :P). Lol no, been watching Bond since I was a kid. I will certainly be checking it out. Maybe I like it more because my expectations have been lowered quite a chunk.

And that trailer (and teaser) gave me goosebumps every time I watched it 😦

As a fan of the 007 franchise, I like that they reintroduced SPECTRE into the modern James Bond world. In addition, Blofeld is a classic villain. He was Bond’s arch nemesis in the earlier films. Not only did they bring him back, but they gave him a backstory that actually made it personal between he and James. This film caters more to true fans of the 007 franchise than to casual watchers. I liked it.

Hi there, welcome to FC! I initially thought it’s brilliant they introduced SPECTRE into the modern James Bond world but if only they made Blofeld an interesting character. Like you I’m a big Bond fan too, which bums me out even more that this ends up disappointing.

Honestly, I’m just excited that they reintroduced Blofeld at all. I’d be more disappointed if they brought back SPECTRE without having Blofeld at all. I also liked the reference to Donald Pleasence’s portrayal with his getting the scar across his eye. While some may feel that Blofeld’s return was lackluster, I have hope that his character will become more interesting as it gets fleshed out further in future films.

Oh I like Mendes generally and LOVED Skyfall, but judging from what he did w/ Spectre, I think we should get a new director. In fact, maybe bring back Martin Campbell who did a stellar job w/ Casino Royale. What do you think of that?

Having seen it twice now, it’s slightly disappointing, but still manages to surpass most of the previous Bond films. I agree on the problems with the Bond girls and villain, though. It’s kinda like Quantum of Solace for me, as I love the story that the filmmakers were trying tell. While I really like the film overall, it’s definitely not near as good as something like Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, which was brilliant.

Hi Josh, you’ve seen this twice? I couldn’t bother seeing this again anytime soon. I actually rewatched one of Moore’s Bond movies For Your Eyes Only which was silly at times but at least it was entertaining. Yep, definitely a letdown and made Rogue Nation look like an Oscar contender!!

About me

Hello I'm Ruth! Film is in my blood. LOVE movies of all genres, from Jane Austen to James Bond. Official blogger for the Twin Cities Film Fest (TCFF). I've recently completed my first feature screenplay & produced my first short film HEARTS WANT. Visit facebook.com/heartswantfilm

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